Audible Reveals New 'Audible Captions' Feature That Lets Subscribers Read-Along While They Listen

Audible

Audible recently revealed that it will soon release a new feature that will add captions to its audiobooks. Called Audible Captions, the feature will give subscribers the ability to listen and read along with the books at the same time. Subscribers will also be able to highlight words from the captions and look up their definitions.

The Amazon-owned company announced the feature via a promotional video on YouTube, which positions the feature as a way to see “storytelling in a new way.”

According to Audible Chief Executive Donald Katz, Audible Captions was created with students in mind. In fact, select Audible Captions enabled content will be available for free to public classrooms across the country.

“We know from years and years of work, that parents and educators, in particular, understand that an audio experience of well-composed words is really important in developing learners,” Katz told USA Today.

While Audible subscribers likely will embrace the new feature, many publishers aren't too happy, saying these captions are “unauthorized and brazen infringements of the rights of authors and publishers.”